**Side: Prim**
The day after contracting with eight B-rank and eleven C-rank butlers at the Float Butler’s Guild Headquarters, Yamato and Mana visited the Bestia, Dragunia, and Glacian Butler’s Guild Headquarters, where they contracted with four new S-rank and nine B-rank butlers.
It was unexpected that there were only nine B-rank butlers available for immediate contract, but it was a lifesaver to have four S-rank butlers in return.
At Fraydlancia Tenchaku Residence and Lapislazurite Tenchaku Residence, one S-rank butler was assigned as chief at each, with six B-rank butlers residing in. The remaining two S-rank and five B-rank butlers were assigned to Esmeralda Tenchaku Residence.
The C-rank butlers were also distributed evenly, but they are commuting, so it might be better to hire more.
The newly hired butlers are contracted with the Tenjakku family, not Wing Crest, so they generally won’t come to Alka, but this marks the completion of our butler expansion.
After that, with Brother Rai and Rex also involved, we began preparations for the Varie Labyrinth conquest.
However, the discussions ended in a single day, and it was decided to leave Rex and Muse’s absence to Associate Order’s Master Miranda, so until then, life was as usual.
Then, on April 26th, we headed for the Varie Labyrinth.
The party consisted of me, Yamato, Mana, Sister Hilde, Meena, Flam, Lydia, Ludia, Athena, Mako, Marisa, Mirei, Alice, and Rex and Muse – a total of 15 people.
We had only explored up to the 2nd Level, and we only knew that the 1st Level was a mountain stratum and the 2nd Level was a snowy mountain stratum.
Other hunters were reluctant to enter, but it was known that the labyrinth went down to at least the 6th Level.
I recall the 3rd Level being a grass plain stratum, the 4th Level a plateau stratum, the 5th Level a lakeside stratum, and the 6th Level an islet stratum.
While C-rank monsters start appearing from the 4th Level, it seemed that even by the 6th Level, B-rank monsters did not appear.
This doesn’t mean they don’t inhabit it, but even if they do, their numbers would likely be small.
Moreover, the fact that only up to C-rank monsters appear even at the 6th Level suggests that the Varie Labyrinth has not experienced a Labyrinth Flood, or if it has, the monsters that emerged have not had a significant impact. This, in turn, could mean there are other labyrinths elsewhere, which is a very troublesome thought.
With the old Retisencia region being sealed off, no hunters are entering the Varie Labyrinth.
It’s not entirely nonexistent, but entry into the old Retisencia region is currently by permit only, with the condition of having multiple High-ranks in at least Raid or Union.
Monsters that overflowed from the Labyrinth Flood are still thought to be present, and the ecosystem may have changed.
There’s even speculation that Demise Species have evolved due to the Divine Emperor’s landing, making it difficult for even High-ranks to visit casually.
Nevertheless, investigation is mandatory, so the current situation is that Raid and Union, which have Ancient Hunters, are being given specific requests.
While investigation is possible with a few High-ranks, unforeseen circumstances are highly probable, so while permits are issued, it is not recommended, which is the current situation.
Fortunately, we had already purchased maps up to the 6th Level, so with Rex and Muse’s agreement, we decided to fly to the 6th Level.
Rex and Muse cannot use Wing Burst, but since this year, Yamato has used the newly developed Supplication Magic, Wing Ring, to enable Flying.
Wing Ring is a magic that converts released mana into pseudo-wings. It does not have enhancement effects like Wing Burst. It can be used by High-ranks and allows even non-winged races to fly, so aerial combat by High Hunters and High Ritters has greatly increased. However, for High-ranks, mana is depleted in about a few minutes to ten minutes.
Marisa and Mirei, who are High-class, and Alice, who is Normal Class, are being held by Yamato with Telekinetic Magic, and Wind Magic is being used to create barriers. However, they are moving at quite a speed, and Alice, in particular, looks pitiful with tears in her eyes.
But thanks to that, we were able to reach the 6th Level in about 3 hours. The 6th Level was also nearly half-filled, so we cleared it in a little over an hour.
“So this is the 7th Level.”
“A forest stratum. While standard, considering the monsters that may inhabit it, I’d prefer to bypass this as well.”
“Even so, isn’t flying here quite difficult?”
“Yes, I think that’s the problem.”
Muse and Sister Hilde are right, flying in a forest is quite challenging. For us, who are Ancient Class and Element Class, even the trees within the labyrinth are not obstacles, but they are still bothersome. And even if we fly above the forest, we might miss a Safe Area. Safe Areas in forest strata are often in open spaces, but that’s not always the case.
“‘Mapping’. This stratum doesn’t seem that wide.”
“Let me see. Certainly, with this feel, it’s about the standard width of a labyrinth.”
“Besides, the 1st and 2nd Levels are too wide.”
Yamato displayed Mapping and Mana looked from the side, but their words were somewhat reassuring. Rather, I agree with Ludia.
“I don’t know what they were thinking, but I can’t comprehend, nor do I intend to, the logic of labyrinths.”
“Well, we have no choice but to move forward, so let’s go.”
“Right.”
Well, since we came to conquer it, we have no choice but to move forward. Besides, it seems narrower than the 1st Level, which is a welcome change.
However, while moving forward is good, it is still incredibly difficult to fly in the forest. There is a forest path, but the trees are so dense that even with a Beast Carriage, branches will hit us. In fact, even on foot, the branches are a real nuisance.
“Such forest paths are not uncommon in deeper levels, but at around the 7th Level, this is quite troublesome.”
“Yes. Even with branches like these, a Beast Carriage can ignore them thanks to the Barrier’s Tenma Stone, but when flying, they are an absolute nuisance.”
“We are in a hurry, but since we are also surveying unconfirmed levels, we will proceed with the Beast Carriage as planned from here.”
That’s how it will be. The maximum duration we could allocate for the Varie Labyrinth conquest this time is two weeks. The width is unknown, but if we aim to clear one level per day, we can reach up to the 26th Level. Of course, we might clear more than two levels in a day, or conversely, not even advance half a level, but if the number of levels is around 20, conquest is certainly possible. There are labyrinths with over 30 levels, but if this one is also like that, we’ll have to postpone the conquest to another time.
“U-uhm, I will summon Valey.”
“Yeah, please do.”
Alice, still a bit dazed from the high-speed flight, summoned Grantpus Valey, with whom she has a Summon Contract, and connected it to the Tree-made Multi-functional Beast Carriage. Multi-functional Beast Carriages are gradually replacing box-type beast carriages as the standard for nobles and wealthy Guild Registrars, but the issue is their weight, which is proportional to their size. As a countermeasure, wind and dark magic are applied to the wheels of the multi-functional beast carriage to reduce its weight. Thanks to this, like box-type beast carriages, two Battle Horses or one Grantpus or Hippogriff can tow it. Lidoceros, like Flam’s familiar Lou, can also tow it with a single unit. Valey, with whom Alice has a contract, is said to have a somewhat rough personality for a Grantpus, but it follows instructions properly and is strong, so I’ve heard it’s an excellent vehicle beast.
“Alright, preparations are complete. Then, let’s go.”
“Yes. Valey, please.”
After connecting Valey, everyone boarded, and when Alice gave the command, the beast carriage began to move. Alice is driving, and Mirei is beside her. Meena and Flam are on the front deck, so there will be no problem dealing with surprise attacks from monsters. Well, since only up to C-rank monsters have inhabited the previous levels, Alice should be fine unless something extreme happens. B-rank monsters might appear, but we can handle those too. Considering that, for Alice to evolve, we would need monsters around G-rank to appear, so it might be tough until we reach around the 10th Level.
“The visibility is poor, but it doesn’t feel menacing.”
“Well, it’s still the 7th Level, and the monsters inhabiting it are probably I-rank or C-rank.”
“B-rank might be present, but even then, they are nothing to us. The same goes for Rex and the others, right?”
“Well, as you say.”
Since Rex is also an Ancient Human, not only will B-rank, but even S-rank monster attacks won’t affect him; he can even instantly defeat them. Furthermore, with four Element Class, eight Ancient Class, two High-Class, and one Normal Class this time, unless A-rank or O-rank monsters swarm us, we won’t fall behind.
“Speaking of which, Yamato.”
“Yes, what is it?”
“Regarding Alice’s level-up, even if B-rank monsters appear from this stratum, wouldn’t that be of little significance?”
“Yeah. Until monsters around G-rank appear, we’ll take care of defeating them appropriately.”
Alice is already Level 42, so there’s a high possibility of evolving into High Class simultaneously with leveling up. However, this temporary Alliance has as many as eight Ancient Class members and four Element Class members, so one additional High Class member won’t make a significant difference in combat power. Even so, the reason we want Alice to evolve is to make it easier for the Silkest Crawlers, with whom Alice has a Summon Contract, to evolve into Grand Silk Crawlers. It is not that summoning beasts necessarily evolve when their summoner evolves, but it is said that when either the Summoner or the Summoning Beast’s mana connects, the other party becomes easier to evolve. Of course, it’s not absolute, but summoning beasts contracted by High-ranks seem to have many evolved species, so the possibility is not low. Even if Alice doesn’t evolve, we can still evolve her Silkest Crawlers, but we would prefer their evolution to be faster. The reason for this is to produce Lumina Silk Cloth by drawing silk from Grand Silk Crawlers. For Ancient Class and Element Class, materials below G-rank monsters degrade quickly due to mana enhancement. Even with everyday use, they last about a month, but in combat, it’s not uncommon for them to not last even a day, let alone one battle. Therefore, for us Ancient Class members, materials of P-rank monsters or higher are essential. Grand Silk Crawlers are abundant in the 5th Level of the Krater Labyrinth, so if needed, we can go hunt them there, but going that far is quite troublesome, and there are many rivals targeting them, so at worst, it could lead to a fight for them and we might not be able to secure enough. However, if Alice’s Silkest Crawlers evolve, that effort will be greatly reduced. Alice’s evolution and the evolution of her Silkest Crawlers are not directly equivalent, but for us, it is a matter of life and death, so we absolutely want Alice to evolve during the conquest of the Varie Labyrinth.
